Two pharma companies slapped with fines

The Competition and Markets Authority has slapped US pharma giant Pfizer with a £63 million fine after it was accused of overcharging the NHS. The CMA said the company had charged unfairly high prices for phenytoin sodium, an epilepsy drug, for over 4 years.
 
In addition to this, pharma firm Flynn was also charged £6.7 million as part of the CMA investigation. The regulator said the firm's de-branded the drug, previously known as Epanutin, meaning it was no longer subject to price regulation and the firms could choose what prices to set for the life-saving drug.
 
Pfizer charged the NHS prices between 780% and 1,600% higher than previously over those four years, according to the CMA. The fine follows a £90 million fine imposed by the CMA in December 2016 after finding that the two firms had breached competition law. The decision was challenged and brought to the Court of Appeal in March 2020, after which the CMA reopened its investigation.
 
Pfizer’s profits more than doubled to hit $22 billion in 2021 after its coronavirus vaccine was granted emergency approval by health regulators. The jab is thought to have saved millions of lives worldwide. Their spokesperson has said that the company disagreed with the decision and would be appealing against it.